Sunday, August 23, 2020

Lorca’s play on tragic love

Lorca’s play on unfortunate love, The House of Bernarda Alba, is his last total play. It is deciphered as an allegory of suppression with its topic concentrated on disappointment, respect and passing. The play contains both the energy and the torment in the extraordinary battle of a gathering of ladies kept under tight restraints even from the idea of adoration by a domineering mother, Bernarda. The play researches and gives a reaction, yet not an answer, to the issues of abuse, offense, sexuality and being a casualty. Bernarda’s exacting guideline is as amazing as the wilful idea of the most youthful lady who double-crosses the family.Her capacity to fulfill her sexual want emblematically breaks the request for outrageous restraint and total control. Her disobedience and demise mark the reasons and impacts of the subdued environment. Extreme dissent, despondency, and franticness underline the significantly progressively outrageous control, undesirable dread, carelessne ss, and particularly quietness that happen to the ladies who stay in the house. Anyway additionally examining way to deal with the issue of casualty in the play uncovers that Bernarda’s girls show up as casualties as well as Bernarda herself being a scammer is a victim.Bernarda Alba is the mother, a sensational character, whose words convey the authority of the incomparable ruler and whose life shows little feeling. In this grimness she manages her family unit, never saving from her anger any individual who endeavors to disavow the smothering environment she has superimposed on herself and her little girls. Accordingly, all †Bernarda, the girls, the workers †exist in obscurity and despondency at last prompting sterility of feelings lastly to suicide.Bernarda is a narrow minded and domineering lady who in the end drives her little girls into the sadness. They lose each remnant of expectation; this misfortune drives straightforwardly to the ethical passing of every li ttle girl and to the physical demise of the most youthful. Gradually, yet unequivocally, Bernarda channels the brains and hearts of her little girls until they become as white and desolate as the dividers of their physical jail the allegory of which is passed on by the visual idea of the house with its thick dividers and a couple of windows and entryways prompting the outside world.However, this noteworthy visual picture surpasses its strict importance and, most importantly, speaks to a sociocultural organization keeping all the primary characters of the play in subjection to social doctrines and rules. Inside the bounds of its dividers Bernarda and her family rehash the old customs, in the same way as other ages of ladies that went before them. This tedious and aggregate act demolishes the uniqueness of the person for saving man centric hegemony.When perusing The House of Bernarda Alba it becomes evident that the play’s most impressive quality is in its exchanges, while the characters are restricted in their development and space inside a shut down area. By dint of sound-related methods, Lorca arrives at the elucidation of the difference among young ladies and their mom. This difference is accentuated by different gadgets like contras of highly contrasting, and these two hues are featured all through the play: the dark dresses of the ladies in grieving, as opposed to the extremely white dividers of the house.Moreover, Bernarda’s tyrant voice stands apart as she orders, â€Å"Silence! † [p. 161] at the opening, all through, and end of the play, firmly related for each situation to the demise of one individual from the family and the profound passing of those living. In spite of Bernarda’s call for quiet, different sounds prevail with regards to infiltrating the thick dividers and add to characterize the idea of their general public and the polarity between life inside and outside the house. Bernarda’s house is a family withou t men. This is by destiny just as by author’s expectation to set up questionable circumstances.Upon the demise of her significant other, she should accept the man centric job of ensuring her daughters’ respect and denies the nearness of men inside the bounds of the house, consequently constraining the world her girls are permitted to know. Her home is unmistakably administered by male centric powers. Pepe el Romano, the male character we don't see yet find out about, is the most grounded propelling power in the play. Bernarda’s tyrant talk adamantly imitates what she gained from her dad and her grandfather.This idea partners property with social class, as Bernarda is very much aware. Whenever one of her girls has the chance of wedding, she doesn't permit it: â€Å"BERNARDA, boisterously. †I'd do it a thousand times finished! My blood won't blend with the Humanas' while I live! His dad was a shepherd. † (p. 191). The circumstance inside the dividers o f her home would have been very unique had Bernarda discovered enough men of her social condition to wed her little girls. Lorca arraigns society, and the peruser may be slanted to censure Bernarda as well.Although she doesn't know about it, Bernarda is a casualty turned trickster. Similarly that her little girl, Adela, is emblematically choked by her mother’s persecution, as she ends it all by hanging, Bernarda’s maternal sentiments have been choked by society. As a widow, she utilizes her recently discovered forces to propagate those qualities that advantage men. She turns into their accessory. Her better half was a womanizer, and she asserts that men ought to appreciate the opportunity of the roads. Ladies ought to be kept in the house, against their characteristic instincts.Bernarda is, best case scenario, a defective man, as exemplified in her bombed endeavor to utilize the firearm â€a phallic image. BERNARDA: The weapon! Where's the weapon? She surges out. La Poncia runs in front of her. Amelia enters and looks on alarmed, inclining her head against the divider. Behind her comes Martirio. ADELA: No one can keep me down! She attempts to go out. [†¦] A shot is heard. BERNARDA, entering: Just take a stab at searching for him now! MARTIRIO, entering: That gets rid of Pepe el Romano. ADELA: Pepe! My God! Pepe! She runs out. PONCIA: Did you murder him?MARTIRIO: No. He dashed away on his horse! BERNARDA: It was my shortcoming. A lady can't point (p. 210) Within the play another mother figure, Maria Josefa, passionately separates herself from Bernarda and approaches Adela, subsequently leaving Bernarda without help and vulnerable. She sings a children's song while holding a â€Å"baby† (a sheep) in her arms, a demonstration that Bernarda †without maternal impulses †appears to be unequipped for performing. Bernarda as a mother figure gets dehumanized and accordingly closer to the components of a peculiar caricature.At the st art of the play the house cleaner La Poncia undermines Bernarda’s open picture with her tattle. Toward the finish of the play, and in spite of Bernarda’s call for quiet, we realize that the neighbors have stirred. The thick dividers have been rendered futile and the domineering figure of Bernarda fall a prey to cultural judgment. List of sources LORCA, Federico Garcia Three Tragedies: Blood Wedding, Yerma, Bernarda Alba. Deciphered by J. G. Lujan and R. L. O'Connell. New York, New Directions Publishing, 1955.

Friday, August 21, 2020

Analysis of The ABC System

Question: Clarify, examination of the ABC framework. Answer: Following an assessment, I think it is significant for the firm to acquaint the ABC estimating framework with their bookkeeping adventures. The ABC framework has different advantages that sideline the negative consequences of the utilization of the framework. It will offer the firm progressively precise costing of the two items, instead of depend on the top market players; it offers the firm a superior comprehension to the overheads; the framework offers use to the unit cost as opposed to simply the all out expense and makes obvious waste and the non-esteem including commitment (CHANG, C, 2010, 47). The framework will bolster the executives execution and the scorecards, and offers a simple assistance of the benchmarking forms. Be that as it may, the activity of the framework requires gigantic assets and is exorbitant to keep up (RUHANITA MAELAH, 2011, 73). In any case, with the income in the firm, it will be anything but difficult to work the ABC easily. The ABC produces numbers with item edges that don't stream with the information from the current customary bookkeeping techniques, and the information from the framework can have a simple distortion. The overhead expenses of the firm are insufficient to cause stress consequently the framework will run easily. The steady worth the firm will accomplish by the portion of overhead will be a little fanatical enthusiastic character issue of the firm as opposed to a demonstration of good bookkeeping. Furthermore, the firm has less head exercises that utilization up the overhead expenses. Along these lines, the lower the exercises that utilization the overhead costs, the simpler it will be to actualize the ABC framework in the firm. The firm will follow, through the new framework, the exercises that lead to the overhead costs to the specific item in the firm. After the following, the ABC offers fitting estimates known as cost drivers to attach the overhead costs to the item point and offer a considered arrangement (Maingi, J, 2013, 58). Taking everything into account, the ABC framework will be a proper instrument for the firm to deal with the overhead expenses, and increment the general productivity of the fabricated items. The ABC will offer numbers that will change the manner in which the proprietor of the business thinks and offer more innovative arrangements than those from the copying of the rivals in his line of business. References CHANG, C. M. (2010). Administration frameworks the executives and designing: making vital separation and operational greatness. Hoboken, N.J., John Wiley Sons. Maingi, J., 2013. Focal points Disadvantages of action based costing concerning financial worth expansion. Smile Verlag. RUHANITA MAELAH. (2011). Research in the board bookkeeping Malaysian condition. Newcastle upon Tyne, Cambridge Scholars Pub. https://public.eblib.com/decision/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=1114410.

Wednesday, July 8, 2020

The official list of things to circle on SAT ACT reading passages

Warning: while this may look like an awfully long list of things to circle, chances are that only a handful of these words/phrases will show up on any given passage. This is also not intended to be a exercise in memorization; rather, it is to get you thinking about the kinds of ways in which authors indicate to their readers the most important aspects of what theyre trying to say. Furthermore, the point of looking out for these things is not to turn your reading into a transition hunt at the expense of actually absorbing what youre reading. Just circling transitions mechanically and not thinking about what role they play in the passage at large will not get you very far and may in fact make things harder for you. However, if you actively consider them in relation to the point of the passage once youve established it, they will help you establish a general map of the key places in the argument. Major Transitions: Supporting: And So For In fact Indeed Of course Therefore/Thus Consequently As a result In addition Also Furthermore Moreover Likewise Similarly Contradicting: But Yet However (Al)though/Even though Despite While Whereas Nevertheless Rather Comparison/Contrast: In comparison In contrast Just asso Explanations: Because Since Explains The answer is Giving you the point: The point is The goal/aim is To sum up In other words After all In the end The (main) idea Important Information: Important Key Crucial Essential Fundamental It is true/not true It is clear/unclear Strong Language: Absolutely Unequivocally Exceptionally Extraordinarily Unquestionably Definitely Always Never Nothing Inevitably Fundamentally Unusual Punctuation: Question Marks Indicate rhetorical questions. Questions are prime targets for inference questions because information is often implied but not stated. Colons Explanations Dashes Explanations or supplementary (qualifying) information Semicolons Imply a relationship between two thoughts that is not necessarily spelled out likely spot for inference questions to deal with Words in quotes Used figuratively. The answer to at least one question will depend on your understanding of how a word in quotes is being used, even if the question doesnt ask about it directly. Often indicates skepticism. Italicized words Used to emphasize, underscore, call attention to, highlight

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

An Analysis Of Stephen Mallatratt s The Woman Of Black

Stephen Mallatratt’s adaption to play of â€Å"The Woman in Black† portrays the story of a man named Mister Kipps, who is a solicitor who has been sent to an abandoned home in the East of the country in order to collect the legal papers of a recently deceased woman. However, the audience learns that the woman living in Ell Marsh House was haunted by a spirit known as The Woman in Black. Being based in the turn of the previous century, the play tackles the themes of how the fear of the unknown can transform a man of science into a man fearful of the dark and every single creek; and how the concept of revenge can cause an embittered woman to seek vengeance and claim the thing she lost: Children. The play is set during the time where superstition was surpassed by science and where a rational explanation was being required for how everything occurs but how science can be destroyed by the unexplainable†¦ The structure of Mallatratt’s adaptation takes the form of a â€Å"play-within-a-play†, where the Actor (played by Matt Connor) is running a performance of the story of the Older Kipps’ (played by Malcolm James) story, where the Actor plays Young Mister Kipps and the Older Mister Kipps plays all of the other characters, other than the Woman in Black herself, and they are running through rehearsals, cross-cutting to various times in the inner narrative with a simple click of his fingers and lights up (Lighting design by Kevin Sleep). This cutting between times in the inner narrative and

Netflix Strategy Analysis- Free Sample Solution

Question: Discuss about the Strategic Analysis of Netflix. Answer: Introduction Netflix is the largest and leading company and service provider in the world. The company offers the opportunity to the customers to stream the movies and TV episodes by the internet. From last few years, the company is expanding in new markets and providing better services to the customers over the competitors. The company has got 50 million subscribers in 50 countries across the world. The aim of the company is to provide wide range of movie, TV shows on the internet (Napoli, 2011). Along with this, the original series of Netflix is also available on the various internet devices for the customers. This report will describe the strategy of Netflix in the market to achieve growth and success. Along with this, the aim of the report is to identify the rise of Netflix in the market by changing technology, operating online, innovations and pricing strategies. Further, the report has been described the current performance of the company to analyze the future growth of the company (Lapowsk y, 2014). Institutional Background Netflix was established in 1997 in California by Reed hasting. In starting, the company provided online movies on rental basis. But after the launching subscription services in 1999, company started to deliver purchased rental movies to the customers by US postal services. In 2009, company has increased its database and it is now providing many DVD having different title. In 2009, company had target approx 4.4 million customers. In the same year, the company had done partnership with the consumer electronics to stream on internet connected TVs and other internet connected devices. By this partnership, consumers are able to use the services of Netflix on laptops, iPad, iPhone and other internet connected devices. In present time, the company has around 23 million members in many countries such as Canada, USA, United Kingdom, Ireland, Latin America, and Carrabin (Keating, 2012). Mission: The strategy of the company is to increase the subscription of video streaming domestically and globally. For this manner, company is continuously increasing the customer experience having the focus to expand the streaming services among the customers. The aim of the company is to increase its subscribers in all over the world. Vision: The vision of the Netflix is to become the best entertainment service globally. Company wants to help the content creators across the world to find out for global audience. The company has aim to provide most expensive DVDs to the customers with the fast and free delivery (Changeme, 2015) The Rise of Netflix Video streaming and internet connections are very helpful for the people to download and watch the movies of large files in the homes. Understanding and taking the advantage of this technology, The USA Company Netflix launched the website for streaming in 2009. On the site of video streaming, the people are able to watch many television episodes and Hollywood movies. With this, the company changed content consumption model in the entertainment industry. In present time, company provides such content which can be seen in just one click and that is fit with their needs (Cohan, 2013). This is the time of immediacy and mobility and everything is possible now. Now customers want to play the videos and episodes when they are traveling or doing other things. So, Netflix has provided this facility to the customers. it is observed that the international subscriber base and revenue of the Netflix will increase and will get more success by 2020. The development and rise of the company is as fol lows: 1997- Netflix started working in the entertainment industry and was started by Marc Randolph and Reed Hastings. After one year, the company launched the product only with 30 staff and 925 rentable works. The Rental cost was 50 cents. 1999- Netflix started monthly subscriptions for the customers and subscribers. 2000- In this year, company dropped single-movie rentals and continued with subscription only. The company was also offered for the acquisition by the Blockbuster but after some time it was declined. 2003- This was the important year for the company. In this year, company started making profit. 2005- Till the year of 2005, there were around 35,000 movies available to rent for the customers. Along with this, the company was mailing around million DVDs every day. 2006 to 2011- The sales of DVDs began to decline then the company focused on the online offerings of movies. Netflix then became famous as the Americas favored streaming service. 2012- In this year, the company started to provide original content such as documentaries and stand-up shows. The company got reputation and popularity for creating this kind of shows in the world. 2013- Till the year of 2013, the company had 27.1 million streamers in US and 29.4 in all over the world. 2014- Till the year of 2014, around 40 countries were using Netflix. 2016- Now, the company has around 75 million subscribers and the company is continuously operating with the disc rental business on the monthly rate. But with this, the online service of the company is also very popular among the customers. Along with this, the company is now continuing with the Amazon Prime for high quality content (Walker, 2016). Changing Technology In starting, Netflix provides DVDs to the customers on demands. But with the change of time and demand of the customers, the company has done changes in its technology. Now, company is providing movies and shows for online streaming (Napoli, 2011). With the changing market, company has realized that every piece of content is important and unique so, company has revised its entire catalogues. Now, there are different versions of videos and delivers that file which suits to the customers. To provide the satisfactory services, company is using information technology in its business operations. Company gathers the data base from the past watches and preferences of the customers. With the help of this data, company is able provide the personalized list of shows to the customers (Business insider, 2015). Operating Online The company is operating most of its services online. Company provides DVD on mail and videos and shows for online streaming. The service of the DVD is still growing but the whole model of distributing content is changing. So, the delivery of the content is replacing with streaming of videos and shows. Along with this, the costs of shipping of DVDs are becoming too high in the competitive market. So, the streaming model of the company is considered by the customers. The streaming of videos of is on early adopter stage. The streaming videos online is getting majority by the customers which supports the companys platform (Ozer, 2011). There are the devices such as mobile phones, televisions, gaming consoles, PCs, tablets and Blu-ray players and many devices that can be connected by the internet. These devices can be Netflix enabled and get Netflix streaming services into majority options (Adhikari, et al, 2012). There are many factors such as technology innovations and customers behaviors for the online delivery of content. Netflix has achieved growth in the DVD by mail business till 2013 with the delivery excellence to the customers. Pricing Strategy The company has used both of the business i.e. DVDs by mail request and online streaming of videos. Although the attempt of the company at streaming technology has faces failure but the company provided unique services with the effective strategies to the customers. The company has dominant status in the entertainment and movie streaming market due to its technology. By the unique pricing strategy, company has established significant power in the industry. The company has attractive plans and rates for the customers while streaming online videos. In the US market, there are many subscribers of the Netflix due to its pricing of services (Pelts, 2011). The company is offering four subscription choices to the customers and those are as follows: 1 DVD at a time/ Unlimited streaming- $9 per month 2 DVDs at a time/ Unlimited streaming- $ 14 per month 3 DVDs at a time/ Unlimited streaming- $ 17 per month 2 DVDs / 2 hours streaming - $ 5 per month Netflixs Innovations The innovation in the technology is the heart of Netflix business strategy. Disruptive innovation is the characteristics of Netflix since the company has started operations in the industry. This was the first company which offered DVD by mail order through internet. Along with this, the company has provided most convenient and cheaper services to its customers so that they can enjoy DVD movies and TV shows with no late fees. The company has invested lots of amount in the innovation and development process of technology. The company has done innovations to make fast and easy process for the customers to receive and return of DVDs by mail. Although, there is the strong competition in the market due to kiosks and other mail based companies but Netflix has continuously improved its services of online videos. Company has done innovations from DVD by mail to library of online movies and expanded its business across various platforms. Open Innovation: Netflix has adopted an open innovation approach to improve the recommendation technology and to execute its platform strategy in various platforms. Netflix is engaged with the general public and community by providing around $1 million to the persons who are able to use movie rating data in making recommendation engine better that Netflix. Along with this, the open innovation supported the platform strategy of the company as company has built hundred of new apps for the mobile phone. The company Netflix has used the open innovation to speed up innovation and face the challenges related to make improvements in the recommendation software. Netflix: Dominate Provider of Online Video Streaming With the starting in 1998, Netflix easily captured the market of video store industry. it easily disrupted the entertainment market. In the delay of DVD by mail or in the exchange policy by the customers, the company offered quick turnaround and no late fees. There was another company, Blockbuster which was also operating in the same industry. As compared to Netflix, Blockbuster also provided no-late-fees scheme for the customers. Then Netflix dropped down its prices to compete with the Blockbuster. Today, Blockbuster is facing bankruptcy and its stock has drop down 79% in 2010. Further, Netflix has moved to IDV business. There are many competitors of Netflix in the market. The company is now competing with Television stations, Kiosk Machine services, Cable service providers and many content providers. But the company has unique strategy model to get the growth and success in the business. The company operates all you can eat in a month strategy which leads to the success in the market. Along with this, this has been accepted by studios which are based on DVD products as Netflix purchases DVDs in cash. So, Netflix has market strength of customers which is the main cause of the success of company. Along with this, company has existing business and customers always give preference to the existing business more than new business. So, the Netflix will dominate the entertainment market in future (Favaro, 2016). Netflix Strategy The main strategy of Netflix is focusing on the growth with the large subscription business including the streaming and DVD content by mail. To achieve the growth and success and differentiate itself in the market, the company has adopted customer intimacy strategy with the various innovations to make the business simple easy and fast for the customers. The company is offering delivery method and platform to the subscribers at the low price, which is the most convenient for the customers. This strategy of the company is considered as the highly effective strategy in the company because it helps the company to grow and increase the best resources which is the loyal customer base. By this strategy, company is able to provide best customer services. Though this strategy, Netflix is popular among the customers as the leading brands in home entertainment (Hompson Arthur, 2013). Further, Netflix is also famous in delivering the customer values and experience. The company is able to sustain the competitive advantage in the market because of its unique strategy. The company works as the leader in the market to investigate new technologies. The company is focused in investing new technology to operate efficiently in the market. Company creates values for the customers by adding extensive inventory of content by building recommendation engine. Along with this, company is delivering value to its customers by the recommendation technology. The company provides quick and modified way to the customers to experience and enjoy the content. With the pricing strategy, the company also delivers the value to the customers. Current Performance of Netflix Netflix has the position as market leader among the customers in the market. The company has this position because of its unique marketing strategy as compared to the competitors in the market. The strategy of the Netflix is to provide best internet movies services to the customers and to earn per share every year. The aim of the company is to deliver the growing subscriber base (Tryon, 2013). Through this strategy, company is now able get competitive advantage by offering best quality products and services to attract the customers. The company has ability to deliver its products in short time. Along with this, the company is able manage is cost incurred in the business operations as it has small number of inventory. So, the company has the advantage of competitive advantage over its competitors. Further, the success of the company is based on its services provided to the customers. Netflix has divided the market for the operations and it knows that where and how to compete with the competitors in the market (Zambelli, 2013) Segments: The Company Netflix has divided the segments based on the customers. The customers are differentiated according to the pay of streaming subscription of movies and TV shows. Content: The Company is focused new catalogue and new content in the services to grasp more customer base. There is no scope of other content such as news, sports, music and user generated content but company will always provide better content in pay per view and DVD (BBC News, 2013). Revenue model: The Company has simple subscription based revenue model that shows the success of the company. It is very difficult for existing competitors to copy the services of the Netflix as the company has strong revenue and strategy model for its customers. In case of customers, there are number of customers who are subscribing to Netflix in USA. Due to more subscription, company is growing continuously. Further, the company has invested in the deal of capital into expanding overseas. Along with this, company has also expanded its business in Japan and also planned to enter in the Asian markets such as Hong Kong and South Korea. With this, there is the challenge for the Netflix to penetrate the market in India and China successfully as they are very popular market and highly cost sensitive market. in these markets, Netflix will get more subscriber growth (Enkins, Ford Green, 2013) Future of Netflix There are many factors that are changing with the competitive environment. The factors include convenience, change in lifestyle of the customers, change in the economy, cost and efficiency changes and available options. The combination of these factors leads success of any organization. Based on the analysis, it can be observed that the company Netflix has good position in the market. Due to lack of large collection of physical inventories, the company is able to minimize the cost. The company is facing strong competition from the companies such as Blockbuster as it is providing many offerings to the customers. But Netflix is able to attract more customers due to innovative and unique strategies. On the other hand, the model of Netflix requires high speed internet for access but the company has ability to attract the customers because the costs of internet reduces in long-term. On the basis of these factors, it can be said that the company will get more success in the next 3 to 5 yea rs. It is predicted that Netflix will have around 75 million non-US subscribers and get around $7 billion in revenue by 2020 (Heisler, 2016). The cost is very important in the business as the company can attract more customers by the attractive and affordable prices. Hence, the company is able sustain its financial position so; it will grow in the future. Along with this, company is adopting new technologies and media that the customers enjoy very much. So, company will get customers loyalty and trust in future. Conclusion This report is the analysis of Netflix strategy for the growth and success in the market. From the above discussion, it has been observed that Netflix is the largest and leading company and service provider in the world. The aim of the company is to provide wide range of movie, TV shows on the internet. Along with this, the original series of Netflix is also available on the various internet devices for the customers. On the site of video streaming, the people are able to watch many television episodes and Hollywood movies. There are different versions of videos and delivers that file which suits to the customers. Company provides DVD on mail and videos and shows for online streaming. Further, to achieve the growth and success and differentiate itself in the market, the company has adopted customer intimacy strategy with the various innovations to make the business simple easy and fast for the customers. It has been analyzed that through this strategy, company is now able get competi tive advantage by offering best quality products and services to attract the customers. The company provides quick and modified way to the customers to experience and enjoy the content. So, the company has strong position in the USA market, and it will grow more in the future due to unique pricing and customer strategy. References Adhikari, V. K., Guo, Y., Hao, F., Varvello, M., Hilt, V., Steiner, M., Zhang, Z. L., (2012), Unreeling Netflix: Understanding and improving multi-CDN movie delivery, INFOCOM, pp. 1620-1628 BBC News, (2013), Marvel TV shows to debut on Netflix, accessed on 2nd Feb 2017 from https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-24864631 Business insider, (2015), Netflix has created a clever way to help customers save data while improving picture quality, accessed on 2nd Feb 2017 from https://www.businessinsider.com/netflix-improves-streaming-technology-2015-12?IR=T Changeme, (2015), Netflix Behind the Scenes, accessed on 2nd Feb 2017 from https://rctom.hbs.org/submission/netflix-behind-the-scenes/ Cohan, P., (2013), How Netflix Reinvented Itself, accessed on 2nd Feb 2017 from https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:https://www.forbes.com/sites/petercohan/2013/04/23/how-netflix-reinvented-itself/gws_rd=crei=QeWSWInhJcL_vASm97mADQ Enkins, H., Ford, S., Green, J., (2013), Spreadable media: Creating value and meaning in a networked culture, New York: New York University Press Favaro, K., (2016), Lessons from the Strategy Crisis at Netflix, accessed on 2nd Feb 2017 from https://www.strategy-business.com/blog/Lessons-from-the-Strategy-Crisis-at-Netflix?gko=1f1e1 Heisler, Y., (2016), The future of Netflix, accessed on 2nd Feb 2017 from https://bgr.com/2016/09/22/netflix-originals-content-library-50/ Hompson, Arthur A., (2013), Netflixs Business Model and Strategy in Renting Movies and TV Episodes. Essentials Of Strategic Management: The Quest For Competitive Advantage, New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Higher Education Keating, G., (2012), Netflixed: The epic battle for Americas eyeballs, New York: Portfolio/Penguin Lapowsky, I., (2014), Netflix Is Getting Its Own Cable Channel, accessed on 2nd Feb 2017 from https://www.wired.com/2014/04/netflix-cable/ Napoli, P.M., (2011), Audience evolution: New technologies and the transformation of media audiences, New York: Columbia University Press Napoli, P.M., (2011), Audience evolution: New technologies and the transformation of media audiences, New York: Columbia University Press Ozer, J. (2011), What is Streaming? Streaming Media Magazine. Streaming Media Magazine, accessed on 2nd Feb 2017 from https://www.streamingmedia.com/Articles/ReadArticle.aspx?ArticleID=74052 Pelts, S., (2011), What Is the Netflix Pricing Strategy, accessed on 2nd Feb 2017 from https://marketrealist.com/2016/10/netflix-pricing-strategy/ Tryon, C., (2013), On-demand culture: Digital delivery and the future of movies. New Brunswick, N.J: Rutgers University Press Walker, N., (2016), The rise of Netflix, accessed on 2nd Feb 2017 from https://www.businessreviewusa.com/leadership/5478/The-rise-of-Netflix Zambelli, A., (2013), A history of media streaming and the future of connected TV, accessed on 2nd Feb 2017 from https://www.theguardian.com/media-network/media-network-blog/2013/mar/01/history-streaming-future-connected-tv

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Social Media and Kathmandu Facebook Page free essay sample

The purpose of this report is to answer the question: How do social media and consumer-generated content change the way marketers operate? To answer this question this report uses an analysis of the outdoor clothing company Kathmandu who uses retail stores and an online presence including a Facebook page for marketing their products. The report found that with the increase in media fragmentation, companies like Kathmandu that build an online community of customers engaged with their Facebook page; help ensure their customers are more attentive and favourable to their brand. The report reviews why consumers befriend (‘like’) a company on Facebook and found that the key reasons are to receive discounts and show brand support to their friends. The findings also show that consumers are more likely to trust a brand that has been recommended by their friends or networks on social media. Within the discussions around social media, the report found that there is an increase in consumer generated information from online social media sites such as Facebook, resulting in a need for companies to be customer centric in order to maintain a good reputation or risk damaging their brand. We will write a custom essay sample on Social Media and Kathmandu Facebook Page or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The findings also show that for marketers to make the most out of marketing through Facebook they need to understand why their customers use the site, for instance Facebook is not yet used widely as a place to shop but instead as a place to socialise, connect with peers, share information, photos, organise events and promote what is important to them. Companies that take advantage of this are most likely to gain the best result through marketing on Facebook. Using the findings the report offers three key guidelines for small companies looking to develop a Facebook page. They include; the need to have an interactive page for their customers to keep them engaged; realising the true value of Facebook by increasing their reach and frequency and lastly making sure their online experience is mutually supportive of their offline retails outlets to increase brand awareness and sales. Overall this report found that companies that engage their customers through Facebook and use it as a connection hub to other online and offline marketing initiatives, are likely to gain the greatest impact from using social media as a marketing tool. 2. 0 An Introduction to Kathmandu Holdings Limited Kathmandu Holdings Limited is a New Zealand-based company with operations in New Zealand, Australia and the United Kingdom. The company was founded by John Pawson and Jan Cameron in 1987 following their sale of the ALP Sports Clothing label. The company set up its first retail outlets in Australia whilst manufacturing most of its original clothing range in New Zealand. The companies head office is based in Christchurch, New Zealand and employs approximately 150 staff and includes departments from design to supply chain, marketing to finance, HR to store support, online and customer service to IT support. Kathmandu became a listed company is November 2009 on the Australian and New Zealand stock exchanges. Source (Wikipedia, n. d. ) 2. 1 Products Kathmandu sells a range of different types of clothing and equipment for travel and outdoor activities as shown in image A below. Their products are known for being good quality, middle to high price products that last a long time. On the Kathmandu website they use the following description of their products: ‘Our products are widely known for their quality, reliability, ingenuity and versatility. Lab testing ensures we consistently meet or exceed international standards, while plenty of action in the field means we know our products work the way they’re meant to’. (Kathmandu, n. d. ) Image A: Kathmandu’s product range | | | | Outdoor clothing for adults and children including fleeces, beanies, trekking shoes, gloves and even socks for wearing on a plane to prevent swelling. | Camping gear such as tents, sleeping matts, picnic rugs, head torches, coffee flasks. | Packs and bags such as backpacks, money belts| Accessories such as umbrellas, water bladders, bike seat covers and motion sickness relief wristbands. Kathmandu, n. d. )| 2. 2 Target market and key financials Kathmandu’s target market is primarily active adventurous outdoor people of all ages from the experienced adventurer to the entry-level explorer. They also have a secondary target market of anyone who likes to travel. Image B: Kathmandu’s global financial performance over the las t 3 years: Year| NPAT| Growth| Share price at end of year| Sales (NZ mill)| FY2010| $9. 4m| 0| $2. 05| $245. 8| FY2011| $39. 1m| 316%| $2. 20| $306. 1| FY2012| $34. 9m| -10. 70%| $1. 59| $347. 1| (ASX, 2013) As shown in image B above, Kathmandu has delivered impressive growth and increased sales in the last 3 years. With its innovative designs such as polypro thermal underwear and waterproof hiking boots the retailer is less exposed to competition from other fast-fashion retailers. Today as shown on 23 March, 9. 20am, Kathmandu’s share price is 1. 95, showing the business is continuing to survive well in a tough retail environment. (ASX, 2013) Kathmandu’s key financial highlights for the year ending 31 July 2012 were: * Growth in sales by 13. 4% to $347. 1 million Gross profit margin of 63. 2% 2. 3 Analysis of key financials An analysis of the key financials shown above shows that the following key strategies helped to increase Kathmandu’s revenue and sales over the last few years. In 2012 Kathmandu increased their level of on-going investment in its brand, products and retail channels to support the future growth of the company. This was during a time when retail sa les worldwide were in decline due to ‘uncertain times’ with the economy, causing consumers to spend less in retail stores (particularly seen in Australia). Plus an increase in online shopping, with consumers having more options to buy from international competitors thereby reducing the amount spent in retail stores. The focus of the company to grow their market share in the medium and long term, resulted in an increase in sales however not an improvement in profit due to the costs associated with their growth strategy and investment. The company also introduced loyalty incentives for their regular buyers (Summit club) which increased sales however reduced gross margins. Part of the growth plan for Kathmandu also included the development of a new nline channel and improved direct to customer communication and marketing opportunities through electronic and social media, allowing the company to sell and service customers globally. (Kathmandu, 2012) Kathmandus chief executive Peter Halkett said he saw the current economic conditions as the new normal. Provided there is no further deterioration in economic conditions, following the investmen t program in 2012 Kathmandu expects an improvement in performance in the business, Mr Halkett said, without providing specific guidance. He said the greatest growth opportunity was in Australia, where Kathmandus market penetration per capita is only one-third of what it is in New Zealand. † (AAP, 2012) Analysts believe Kathmandus biggest hurdles for maintaining the same levels of store sales is the potential cannibalism of their existing stores from the opening of new stores and growing market penetration share as competitors such as Anaconda, BCF and Mountain Designs open new stores. (Mitchell, 2012) Interestingly, Jan Cameron the founder of Kathmandu sold the business to a private company in 2006. In 2011, she bought a large share of Macpac another business to rival Kathmandu’s adventure gear. Macpac is a New Zealand based adventure clothing and equipment store for hard core adrenaline people. The company has since spread internationally including many states within Australia. When Jan first took on the opportunity her goal was to offer quality products at a more competitive price than Kathmandu. Analysts have shown that this will be a tough feat for Jan due to Kathmandu being a much larger brand name since she sold it in 2006. (Carruthers, 2011 ) In summary Kathmandu holds a steady place in the markets it sells to and with increased market share through new outlets in Australia, Kathmandu is one of the best known outdoor clothing specialists in New Zealand and Australia and this is unlikely to change any time soon. 3. 0 An investigation of Kathmandu’s Facebook page 3. 1 Marketing on the Kathmandu Facebook page The Kathmandu Facebook page is very inspiring, image C, shows the front page of their page containing pictures of people doing amazing sports and seeing beautiful places, it makes you want to book a holiday or just get outside and climb a mountain! They have over 50,500 likes (as shown on March 24) and growing (over the last week there has been 300 new likes), and over 800 people taking about them, it is a very popular page. Image C: Screenshot of Kathmandu Facebook page (Kathmandu, 2013) The Kathmandu Facebook page offers weekly ‘online only’ deals where customers are directed to their country webpage to take advantage of the special deal. The page is also used to advertise their new products, to provide membership information for their Summit club of regular customers, competitions for products and trips away as well as unique things to see and do with the goal of inspiring travel and adventure and therefore an increase in the need to buy outdoor clothing. The below post in Image D showing an article on the new submarine ‘Ego’ is an example. Image D: Ego Submarine (Kathmandu, 2013)| Korean based design firm Raonhaje has designed this fascinating semi submarine called the â€Å"Ego†. Passengers can observe underwater life via the submerged windows. They also get to enjoy the above water deck! http://www. egosubmarine. com/| The Kathmandu Facebook page allows their customers to ask questions or make general comments such as discussions about their customer service, stores and products. The posts are then responded to by Kathmandu staff, creating a platform for customers to find out information as well as offering Kathmandu the ability to discover more about their customers likes and dislikes. Kathmandu also uses their page to advertise other company’s products that relate to travel and adventure. Image E shows an example below of a new innovative toothbrush. Image E: New innovative toothbrush | Little pet peeve: when your mouth touches a hotel tap when rinsing after brushing your teeth. Say goodbye to that thanks to this amazing tooth brush design! Flowing tap water now becomes a mini fountain for rinsing 🙂 More here: http://www. amronexperimental. com/Amron-Oral. html| (Kathmandu, 2013) Kathmandu, in interests of being seen as a ‘good corporate citizen’ also uses their Facebook page to promote environmental issues such as World Water Day, one of their recent posts shown in image E is below. Image E: World Water Day Its World Water Day and we all know how precious water is! Theres no better day than today to share awareness of this event and encourage water saving behaviour. Do you have any great water-saving tips to share? (Kathmandu, 2013) 3. 2 Engaging their customers through Facebook The Kathmandu Facebook uses several different ways to engage their customers. Their page contains photo albums and videos of different adventure races, photos of every day regular people doing inspirational outdoor activities wearing Kathmandu clothing, such as mountain biking, trekking, camping and sailing. Their photo albums also include photos that customers have sent in of their outdoor adventures and races/events they have participated in. There is an ‘Events’ page set up to advertise upcoming events such as their upcoming Easter sale in all retail stores. Many consumers like to be able to use the online space to search information about a product before they buy. Companies must have interactive Facebook pages to allow their customers the chance to find out more information about a product. (Nesterenko, 2013) For example this new iphone product below is advertised by Kathmandu in Image F. Image F: Kathmandu Iphone product One of their customers Brenda has asked â€Å"Why would you need this when you can get a go pro. Much more robust than an iphone†. Kathmandu has responded with: â€Å"Agree Brenda. This is a cheaper and easy solution for someone perhaps not quite up to the Gopro level. † The response from Kathmandu gives customers a reason to buy if they are looking for an easy solution that is not has expensive as a Gopro and suits their basic needs. Having an interactive page with deals and competitions, photos, discussions and new and interesting products, increases the customer activity with the Kathmandu brand, with the purpose of leading to greater brand awareness and therefore greater sales. Their page is their social hub and not where they do their actual sales. There is no option for customers to buy their products through Facebook but instead is used as a channel to advertise their websites in NZ, Australia and the UK and their Kathmandu Ebay online store, where customers can click through to purchase products advertised. This is a two way channel with each countries individual website page linking to the Facebook page when customers click ‘Like’ on the Facebook icon provided. 3. 3 What Kathmandu could do to improve their use of Facebook The only thing lacking from the Kathmandu Facebook page is a bit more about the identity of their staff and the team behind the Facebook page. Whilst there is a couple of posts showing pictures of the team in certain locations, the page could do with more of this to give it a personal identification so customers visiting feel they are interacting with actual people who care and not just a Facebook page. For example, I tried asking a question regarding a product by sending a message to their Facebook email and did not receive a response for several days. Customers who are engaged with a company’s Facebook content become more attentive and often more favourable to the brand. Frost, 2012) Surprisingly Kathmandu’s key competitors Anaconda and Mountain Designs do not have a presence on Facebook. The marketing department of Kathmandu have done a good job of using their Facebook page to engage customers by enticing them to participate in their content or media, upload photos/videos, post comments, participate in competitions and express their opinions on new products, customer service and all aspects of the company. This then leads to co-creation where users of their products help marketers create products and advertising leading to an increase in customer satisfaction and sales. Frost, 2012) 4. 0 Building and maintaining customers using Facebook 4. 1 Why consumers ‘Like’ pages on Facebook Facebook started out as meeting space for users to build their own online identity and interact with others. Today, Facebook has developed into a full-scale recommendation centre. ‘Liking’ a page on Facebook serves as an opt-in for ongoing communications with the owner of that page and location-based recommendation service ‘Places’ leverages local knowledge and word of mouth. Harris amp; Dennis, 2011) A study by Chadwick Martin Bailey, found that 33 per cent of Facebook users are fans of brands, and 60 per cent of these consumers are more likely to purchase or recommend to a friend after ‘liking’ a brand. The most popular reasons consumers gave for ‘liking’ a brand were to receive discounts and show brand support to their friends. (J, 2010) Actual sales transactions are still in the early days for Facebook with only a few innovators such as Avon permitting an entire purchase to be completed without the consumer needing to leave Facebook. Harris amp; Dennis, 2011) Instead the site is a social hub for consumers to seek and share information on brands sometimes resulting in purchasing products through other means. 4. 2 Consumer trust on Facebook Trust is a very important factor to shoppers when buying online. A recent Nielsen study which showed that consumers trust their friends and family more than any other source of information about products and services, and that online product reviews by consumers are trusted more than information posted directly on a company website. Nielson, 2010) Social media sites such as Facebook enable consumers to generate and tap into the opini ons of an exponentially larger universe through social word of mouth. While word-of-mouth has always been important, its scope was previously limited to the people you knew and interacted with on a daily basis. Social media has removed that limitation and given new power to consumers. (Neilson, 2012) 4. 3 Connecting customers through social networks Consumers are bringing their online experience into their own social networks such as Facebook rather than engaging directly on company’s website. Thousands of media vehicles within each media class vie for the attention of the media consumer. Marketers are now faced with increased media fragmentation, where marketers attempt to use as many online social media platforms as possible in an effort to reach a potential audience. This can cause fragmentation of attention and resources away from what suits the company best and whatever ‘strategy’ was put into place. Nelson-Field amp; Erica, 2011) On the Investor relations page of Facebook their mission is quoted as being: To make the world more open and connected. People use Facebook to stay connected with friends and family, to discover whats going on in the world, and to share and express what matters to them. (Facebook, 2013) Companies need to be forward thinking and move away from the reliance on the centrally contr olled mass broadcast towards the development of personal and localised relationships with well-informed and demanding customers. Harris amp; Dennis, 2011) Today marketers need to consider that consumers are not yet using Facebook as a place to shop but instead as a place to socialise, connect with peers, share information, organise events and promote what is important to them. Companies that understand this and use Facebook as a connection hub to other online and offline areas of their company are likely to get the best value from using Facebook. 5. 0 Three key things for a small company to consider when building a Facebook To make the most out of marketing through Facebook, there are three key things a small company needs to consider when building a Facebook page, including: 1. Using online interactivity to engage customers 2. Measuring the impact of Facebook through greater reach and frequency of content 3. The importance of having a mutually supportive online customer experience to the offline experience In today’s current environment with economic uncertainty and the rise of competition through online global ompanies, small businesses need to be able to compete in a tough environment where consumers have the option to search online through 1000’s of different sites to find the best deal for the product they are looking to buy. Companies need to be able to find ways of offering customers more value for less money to keep them from straying to a competitor. If a company does not treat their customer’s right they risk enormous brand damage through the ability of customer complaints through social media channels reaching a large audience. Before Social Media came along a customer complaint may spread as far as that customer’s family and friends and no further, today you hear stories of customer complaints going viral to millions of people overnight! Brands that were formally shaped by managers of the company are now being shaped by consumers through online consumer generated content including conversations and insights. The online world is a customer – centric model. Consumers have a greater influence over products and brands through co-creation where they can give opinions on products and advertising. Social media sites such as Facebook create communities of people where opinion leaders and peer groups can influence the brands that consumers choose to like and buy from. For example on Facebook you can see what pages your friends like and this can then influence what brands are considered cool or trendy. 5. 1 Using interactivity to engage customers For a small company looking to build a Facebook page one of the key points they should consider is how interactive their Facebook page is. Customers engaged with a company’s content become more attentive and often more favourable towards a brand. Frost, 2012) The Facebook page should not be seen as just a page to advertise products and services. For example as shown in this report, Kathmandu uses their Facebook page to advertise travel, adventure, competitions, new products, sporting and adventure events and other company product innovations relating to travel and adventure all with the goal of increasing customer activity, brand exposure and understanding of their customers wants and needs. Research shows that twice as many brand-related searches on social networking sites relate to user generated content than to marketer-created content. For a smaller company in particular that does not have an existing well- known brand, in order to build brand awareness they must engage their customers and increase user generated content about their brand. (George amp; Jevons, 2012) 5. 2 Measuring the impact of Facebook through greater reach and frequency of content The second key thing a small company should consider when opening a Facebook page is how to gain the greatest reach and frequency of their content to determine the true value of Facebook marketing. Just measuring the amount of Likes, comments or mentions a Facebook page receives is not an accurate way to measure the impacts on customer activity. For example, the newsfeeds section of a consumers Facebook page is where most branded material is consumed. Consumers control this by hiding news they don’t want to see. Therefore a company like Kathmandu may have over 50,000 ‘Likes’ however it may be possible that only a small percentage of consumers who like their page actually choose to see their communications within their newsfeed. Simply knowing how many brand mentions exist does not provide a true understanding of the impact the content has on consumers. Research has shown that a measurement approach that focuses on reach and frequency within audience types (for example, fans and friends of fans) can lead to a dramatically better understanding of how and where brand messages are reaching consumers and the true value of a ‘Like’ or ‘Fan’. (J, 2010) Examples of ways in which a small company with limited marketing budgets can increase the reach and frequency of their content include: Page publishing: Unpaid advertising appears on a Fans page and may also appear in the newsfeed of a fan or a friend of a fan. †¢ Stories about friends: These unpaid impressions occur when a friend actively engages with a brand (e. g. Nicole indicates she â€Å"likes† Kathmandu outdoor sportswear) and become visible either on a friends wall or in the newsfeed. These stories may appear to fans and friends of fans. †¢ Sponsored stories: These paid impressions are similar to stories about friends, but they have been actively distributed more broadly and appear in the right hand column to fans and friends of fans. Advertisements with social: These branded messages come directly from the advertisers with a social context that appears to friends of fans, see example in Image G below. (Lipsman, et al. , 2012) Image G: branded message Facebook From Stephanie Stephanie amp; Dove displaced a feel-bad ad with this positive message. Send yours. Senta Vonck likes Dove. (Facebook, 2013) In conclusion a company looking to build a Facebook page to engage their customers can increase the impact their content has by using different paid and unpaid ways to distribute their content to their ‘Fans’ as well as their friends and other contacts. Just like in the offline world, the higher the reach and frequency of advertising the higher the brand exposure, leading to higher sales. 5. 3 The importance of having a mutually supportive online customer experience to the offline experience The third key thing a small company looking to set up a Facebook page should consider is how to make the online experience for their customers mutually supportive to the offline experience of visiting their retail store. This is important to ensure as many customers as possible know about new products, offers and promotional sales. In today’s environment with increasing competition and slow sales within retail, both cannot survive without the other. Below are two examples of ways to ensure mutual support of online and offline marketing: Promoting offline events through online ads, social sharing and blog posts dedicated to the events. For example Kathmandu on their Facebook page advertises their sales promotions for their retail stores. An example of this is shown in Image H from Kathmandu Facebook site and their Brookvale, Sydney retail store: Image H: Easter Sale on Kathmandu Facebook page and Easter Sale in retail outlet Warringah Mall. Kathmandu, 2013) 6. 0 Conclusion In today’s customer centric world, marketers need to have a good understanding of what their customers’ needs and wants are. Social media sites like Facebook are an excellent platform for marketers to learn more about their customers through building online communities and engaging in authentic and transparent communicatio n. Companies now have access to a much wider audience and at the same time consumers are able to research many different sources of information about a company’s products or services through website chat rooms, opinion boards and their networks on social media. By building communities using social media platforms such as Facebook, companies through consumer-generated content are able to market their products to a larger audience and build greater awareness of their brand. Companies such as Kathmandu can no longer rely only on advertising within their stores or offline advertising such as magazine ads and TV commercials, those who do not include social media as part of their marketing strategies are in danger of being left behind by competitors who do.